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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22550041">Wandering Revenant</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArchdemonSlayer/pseuds/ArchdemonSlayer'>ArchdemonSlayer</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Code Vein (Video Game)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, Other Additional Tags to Be Added</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-02-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 16:01:36</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,829</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22550041</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArchdemonSlayer/pseuds/ArchdemonSlayer</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Everyone who's a revenant has their own origin story after waking up. This is the story of Louis as he makes his way through as a revenant.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Wandering Revenant</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Note: I began working on this early in January, so if a light novel or anything else is made with regards to the subject in this story, just know that this came first, so some parts of this may not line up if any future material is released. This also doesn't precisely follow with the manga Memory Echoes.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Louis awoke, which he found strange. He was supposed to be dead, right? He remembers the feeling of those large spikes entering his back followed quickly by the world going black.</p><p>He took in what he was lying on. Instead of rubble surrounded by the stench of smoke and blood, he was on top of a warm bed. He was supposed to be in a ruined government facility, be here he was in a room.</p><p>It had clearly seen better days, but it appeared to have no risk of collapse. The walls were painted white with only a few signs of damage. There was a window, but it was covered in black so no one could see inside. Is there a reason for that? There were a couple of bookshelves, but both only had a dozen or so books. The door out of the bedroom was painted white like the walls. And just like them, it had several long curls of peeling paint.</p><p>"Am I alive?" Louis murmured. No, his body felt strange, as if it had just began working again. "No, I know this feeling... I've come back to life again. What... happened back there? Cruz... Everyone was..."</p><p>Louis narrowed his eyes. He... was cradling his dying sister. And then... Cruz...</p><p>He died. His sister died. Everyone there died. But... he's alive again. Why? He looked down at himself. He was wearing clothes similar to the ones he wore when he died, a white collared shirt with a vest over it and a ring on a chain necklace hanging from his neck.</p><p>The door opened and someone walked in. Louis was a little surprised. He thought he was the only one in whatever building he was in. But then again, if he was here, that means someone brought him here. And if they went through that much trouble, they would most likely stay nearby to make sure their efforts weren't wasted.</p><p>The person who just came in was a woman with long brown hair going down to the middle of her back. It was in three braids. Two were on either side of her head and draped over her shoulders. The third went down her back. Her eyes were dark green, but were dark blue around her pupils. She was wearing a white coat with fur edges over a skin-tight red shirt and was wearing a pair of blue jeans that only went down to the bottom of her calves. Her skin tone was pale, so much that it was almost white. Appearance-wise, she looked older than Louis. She looked to be in her late 30s to early 40s. She was wearing makeup, red lipstick and black eyeliner.</p><p>"What is your name?" she asked, not introducing herself first.</p><p>"Louis Amamiya."</p><p>The lady crossed her arms as she spoke again. "Good. You've retained your memory there."</p><p>"Excuse me, but why would I lose my memory of something like that?"</p><p>She uncrossed her arms. "When humans are reborn as revenants, they tend to lose some of their memory. For some, this can be solved by giving the person a few prompts to regain it. However for others, the memory is lost forever with no hope of regaining it. The amount of memory lost also varies from revenant to revenant. Some are only missing one or two memories while others are missing several. These questions are asked of those reborn in order to determine exactly what those lost memories are."</p><p>"Why am I here?" At the moment, that was the most burning question for Louis.</p><p>"Weren't you listening to me earlier? You died and were reborn as a revenant."</p><p>It was then that Louis seemed to sense the an sense of someone important. Someone who died with him. Surely if he was reborn, she was too. Louis looked around the room but only saw the cracked walls surrounding them and the little amount of furnature. "Where's my sister?"</p><p>"Karen? I'll be blunt. She's missing right now. We don't know if she's dead or alive."</p><p>Missing?! What the hell even happened to cause that?! After all, he was holding her when they both died. Wouldn't they have woken up together then?!</p><p>Their was only one more person who ought to be here. She was friends with Karen, so Louis had met her several times and he recognized her as a trusted person. She died shortly before Karen and Louis did due to Cruz. Given that she was in the same area, she should have been reborn as well. "What about Aurora?"</p><p>"Unfortunately, her current status is unknown at this moment."</p><p>Louis was at a loss for words. Was everyone he could rely on gone? He let out a few involuntary coughs. This was strange. Why did his throat feel almost as dry as the desert. Would drinking water fix it? He doubted it. He felt he needed something to drink. The woman seemed to be able to sense this as well, because she spoke again.</p><p>"You're thirsty, aren't you? Lucky for you, we have several blood beads in storage. Even though we have four revenants here including you, we've collected enough that we'll be able to keep all of us sated for several months even with Silva's levy."</p><p>The woman left the room with that. A few seconds later, Louis heard her talking to someone elsewhere in the building.</p><p>"Hey, Arnold, the other revenant woke up. Can you grab a blood bead from storage? We don't want him to frenzy... You already have one to give? Why is that... What is that you're trying to hide behind your back?.. A blood bead? But you had a large one last month. You should still be good for another... I don't care if you got a little thirsty! With the levy, you should only have one when you're about to frenzy! The levy was put in place almost five years ago, you should know it by now!.. Did you bite into it yet?.. No? Good, then put it back!... I don't care how many we have, we need to ration them in case of an emergency!"</p><p>A few minutes later, the bedroom door opened again and the woman walked in. In her right hand was some kind of red object. She crossed over to the bed Louis remained sitting in.</p><p>"Hold out one of your hands," she instructed him. He did as he was told, extending his left arm out to the woman, presenting his empty hand to her like a person expecting to be handed money. She then gently put down whatever she was holding in Louis' hand.</p><p>Louis stared at the object in his hand. It was the shape of a teardrop. Both ends looked to have steel caps on them, keeping the red liquid it was filled with inside. Within the liquid were a bunch of things that looked like the head of a flower made of red crystal. Raining down on it was what looked like tiny petals from a red rose. The liquid looked similar to blood, so it shouldn't be that appetizing. Then why did Louis feel his thirst increase just by looking at it?</p><p>"What is this?" Honestly, Louis wasn't sure <em>what </em>he was supposed to do with it. Instict was screaming at him to drink its contents. But how? And even should he listen to his gut reaction, would it even be safe for him to drink whatever this scarlet liquid is? After all, it could turn out to be toxic to his body and may result in his death.</p><p>"It's called a blood bead," the woman answered. "Bite it and drink what's inside. You won't feel thirsty afterwards."</p><p>Louis did just that without thinking. His body just acted on its own as if it could no longer hold itself back. He had fangs now where small canines used to be and they easily broke through the bead's glass-like surface. As Louis felt the liquid inside rush into his mouth, Louis felt the thirst ravaging his throat fade away.</p><p>Meanwhile, the woman who had taken care of Louis stared at the young man hungrily sucking the bead dry. "You're probably wondering what my name is. It's Claire Harmona. I studied under Aurora Valentino. Working with her is what allowed me to meet Karen Amamiya on multiple occasions. Most of what Karen spoke of was concern for you. It was clear she cared a lot for you. I worked as a nurse during Operation Queenslayer, so I had access to you and brought you here when the Queen fell."</p><p>Louis finished sucking the scarlet liquid from the blood bead. The part not covered by either cap was as white as ash from something burning now. Before, it was translucent. But now you couldn't see through it at all, as if the glass-like layer was now filled with the white substance.</p><p>Claire walked over to Louis and took the finished blood bead from his hands. "I'll dispose of this." She turned and began heading for the door. However, right before she reached it, she stopped and looked back over her shoulder at Louis. "Ah, that's right, you're probably curious as to how your revenant body works."</p><p>"Yeah, I do want to know. I don't want to forget something and wind up dead as a result."</p><p>"I wouldn't worry about dying as much as I would about becoming something else..." Claire muttered, so quietly that Louis barely heard her.</p><p>"Hm? Could you repeat what you said?"</p><p>"I still have book your sister comprised on what she studied and observed about revenants. She made it shortly before the end of Operation Queenslayer. That was five years ago, so the information is a little outdated. Regardless, it'll contain most of what you need to know. I'll bring it here so you can read it."</p><p>Claire left the room and the door closed. Minutes later, Louis heard the muffled noise of someone digging around in a few things somewhere on a floor below him. Perhaps it was Claire searching for the book she mentioned. Then maybe the floor below was the basement?</p><p>Several seconds later, the noise stopped. Maybe Claire was able to find it? Shortly after, the bedroom door opened again and Claire walked in. Tucked in one arm and pressed against her chest was what looked like a notebook. The cover looked worn out and it was half off its bindings.</p><p>"Is that it?" Louis asked, pointing to the notebook.</p><p>"It is," Claire answered. "It's more of a collection of notes than an actual book, but despite the fact this thing has clearly seen better days, all of the pages are still here and it should be able to tell you what you need to know. Karen was the type of person to never skip a detail on revenants." Claire handed him the notebook. "Most revenants don't get info on how they work like this. You should count yourself lucky that not only did your sister take notes on them but that it was kept here."</p><p>As she began to walk to the door, Louis spoke up. "Are you a revenant too?"</p><p>"Yep. All of us."</p><p>"All? Who else is there?"</p><p>"When I was getting a blood bead for you, I was talking to someone. That moron decided he would help himself to a couple of our blood beads since we have so many here. That's Arnold, another revenant. One more is here, Arthur. He's currently looking for more blood beads." Claire turned her body so she was facing Louis. "You'll be provided shelter and a blood bead as soon as you need one to keep from going into a frenzy as long as you remain in this place. However, this won't come without a cost."</p><p>"A cost? Do you need me to pay rent?"</p><p>"In a way. The three of us head out every day to collect blood beads. There are four springs relatively near us that aren't dried up. The furthest one is about 16 hours walking distance from here. We usually harvest from these ones. Unfortunately, a spring recently stripped of blood beads takes a day or two to regrow only two. If this dilemma is encountered, two of us prepare to search for another. As we don't know where or when an unharvested one will be encountered, these expeditions can be expected to take anywhere from several days to a couple weeks.</p><p>You'll be given the rest of the day to relax, but you'll be searching for blood beads with the rest of us starting tomorrow. We have a few blood veils and weapons in storage. I'm sure we'll be able to find something for you. Oh yeah! We also have several spare purifier masks in case one of ours gets damaged. So we'll have one of those for you too."</p><p>"Wait, a weapon? Purifier mask? Why would I need those? And what's a blood veil?"</p><p>"A blood veil is a piece of clothing that can be used as a weapon. Unfortunately, revenants aren't the only things moving around out there. There are the Lost. If a revenant frenzies, they turn into one of those monsters. A purifier mask will prevent you from inhaling miasma when you breathe. Miasma causes bloodthirst in a revenant. And too much bloodthirst will cause a revenant to frenzy. Arthur should be back soon. You'll partner with him tomorrow. If you aren't clear on anything else, you can ask him about it."</p><p>"Okay. Thanks, Claire."</p><p>Once Claire left the room, Louis busied himself by looking through his sister's research on revenants. She had been doing research on BOR parasites. When Louis was still alive, only a few humans had these in them. To work, a BOR parasite was surgically implanted in a human's heart. These people were essentially "reborn" as a being called a revenant. Loss of memory due to this is expected, though which memories are gone are unknown until the revenant in question attempts to recall them.</p><p>Honestly, that was all he really knew. At the time, he had been more focused on his studies for college. If only he had been able to glimpse into his own future then he would have focused more on what Karen was saying about revenants and less on his own academics.</p><p>Anyway, the BOR parasite is controlled in a way that they don't completely take over the host as soon as they're implanted. Revenants don't need to eat of drink anything. The only exception was blood. Drinking blood is extremely necessary for revenants. The injested blood keeps the BOR parasite from taking over the host. Going too long without Drinking blood causes bloodthirst in revenants. Drinking the blood of other revenants does nothing for their thirst and if a revenant succumbs to bloodthirst, they undergo a transformation into something called the Lost, a mindless monster continually seeking to quench their unending thirst for blood.</p><p>What Louis found odd was that there was nothing on blood beads. Claire made them sound like the most important thing for revenants. Were they a recent thing then?</p><p>What's interesting is that the BOR parasite grants the host near-immortality. If a revenant takes fatal damage, their body dispersed and reforms at a plant called a mistle. The one they reform at is the most recent one they took a break at. However, memory loss following this is very common and the need to reform the host should be avoided whenever possible.</p><p>Louis wondered how much of his own memories he was missing. And how many times could he reform before he lost his most vital ones?</p><p>Revenants must take care that their heart isn't destroyed. The heart is where the BOR parasite is. If it's destroyed, regeneration of a revenant is impossible and the body disperses into ash.</p><p>Every revenant is equipped with some sort of weapon as well as a blood veil. If the enemy the revenant is fighting is a Lost or some other undead creature, then an attack from the blood veil can drain a substance called ichor from them.</p><p>There are four known blood veil types, each with its own form of attack. They are Ogre, Hounds, Stinger, and Ivy. All four of these are capable of draining ichor, which enables the use of Gifts.</p><p>Gifts are abilities granted to a revenant through their blood code. Every revenant has a blood code in their blood and each is unique. Someone with a broken blood code is known as a Void-type and possesses the ability to gain the blood code of other revenants. However, there are no records thus far of a revenant with this special ability and hence it remains only a theory.</p><p>One person was implanted with a BOR parasite that had been fed the blood of every type of living creature. This treatment was to create a revenant that doesn't suffer from bloodthirst. The name of the patient later known as the Queen was Cruz Silva.</p><p>Cruz... Louis still remembers his former classmate clearly. He still remembers her writhing in agony on the bed in the government building. Her desperate pleas to Louis for him to kill her. He... he couldn't bring himself to do what she asked of him. So, when he went to visit her the next day, she had already lost herself. As a result, everyone in the government building at the time wound up murdered by her.</p><p>One of the notes say that rejection followed the BOR parasite being implanted. She frenzied soon after and became a being that killed everything in sight. Operation Queenslayer was started to kill her once and for all. During this time, many more humans were implanted with a BOR parasite. While many awoke as revenants, some never did. At the time of these notes, it's unknown when, or if, they'll awaken.</p><p>From the Queen came miasma. Mistle exposed to it for too long shriveled up and becomes unusable. Breathing it in causes bloodthirst for a revenant. Purifier masks filter out miasma from the air a revenant inhalers and medicine using the Queen's blood cleanses mistle of miasma. The miasma has also caused more revenants to join the ranks of the Lost.</p><p>While using the ability from an equipped blood veil to drain an opponent, a mask materializes on the revenant due to the blood veil. This mask purifies the drain ichor of impurities to make it usable.</p><p>Louis was so busy looking through the notes that he didn't notice the bedroom door open and someone walk in.</p><p>"Hey! You must be the sleeping revenant! Glad to see you up!"</p><p>Louis looked up from the book. The speaker was a young man with curly brown-blonde hair. His eyes were violet with a slight shade of blue. He wore a loose yellow shirt that was slitted at the bottom. Tied around his right bicep was a band of reddish-orange cloth. The only other thing he wore were a pair of black shorts. Looped from one belt loop to another was a silver chain. He appeared to be around the same age as Louis himself. He must be one of the other revenants Claire mentioned.</p><p>The other revenant grinned wide enough to flash his teeth at Louis. "Great to meet you! I only woke up a few months ago. Anyway, my name is Arthur. I still remember my surname. It's Mavet." Arthur extended his hand to Louis for a handshake. "I was searching for blood beads when you would have been asked if you remember your name. If so, what is it?"</p><p>Louis couldn't help but smile back. This Arthur person was being really kind to him even though they only just met and Louis had a feeling it wasn't from his sister's or Aurora's influence. He took Arthur's hand.</p><p>"I'm Louis. Louis Amamiya."</p><p>"Nice to meet you, Louis! I hope we can become friends! Well, we'll need to get along. Claire told me that I'll be partnering with you tomorrow for your first blood bead hunt." He released Louis' hand and began to whisper. "By the way, and don't tell Claire I said this, she'll turn me to ash, but I'm sure that when she talked to you, Claire came off to you as stiff and uncaring, right? Well, that's the front she always puts up. But I've seen other parts of her come out that say differently."</p><p>"What do you mean by that?"</p><p>"I came back here yesterday all scratched up. I had to fight another revenant for the blood beads I picked from a blood spring. Anyway, the second Claire laid eyes on me, she was on me in an instant. She was scolding me like a mother as she used regen inducers on me and wouldn't let me go elsewhere in here until she was absolutely sure all of my injuries were treated."</p><p>"Sounds like she really cares for others."</p><p>"Though she seems to try her damnest not to let others see it. Arnold, another revenant here, is pretty laid-back. But when it comes to fighting, he's one of the best ones here. And he never half-asses whatever job he's given, be it cleaning the place or defending it from Lost or other revenants. But he has a tendency to do whatever he feels like doing here when he's not on duty. Claire scolds him quite frequently. When I came back a little bit ago, it seems Claire was right in the middle of one of her angry lectures to him. Seems he dug into our blood bead storage."</p><p>"I overheard Claire yelling at him while she was getting me one."</p><p>"He should've known she would find out eventually... Anyway, what'cha reading?"</p><p>"My sister's notes over revenants."</p><p>"Ah. Claire said you were doing something like that. To be honest, I was just glad to be back so I only half-listened to her."</p><p>"The notes mention every revenant having their own thing called a blood code. What's yours?"</p><p>"Me? Mine is Odin."</p><p>"Odin?"</p><p>"Yeah. That's what mine is called. It give me abilities mostly lightning-based. Also, I fight with a halberd since my blood code grants me increased effectiveness with that category of weapon."</p><p>"Do you know what mine is?"</p><p>"No. You may need to be tested for it, but Claire may already know it. You should ask her."</p><p>Someone whistled. "So you must be Louis Amamiya."</p><p>Louis looked behind Arthur to the open doorway of the room, where he heard the whistle. In it was a tall, muscled man with a mess of light brown hair that went down to his shoulders. He had bright, brown eyes and wore glasses over them. He wore a white, button-down shirt with a black tie. The pants that went down to his ankles were black. He looked to be around the same age as Claire, maybe slightly younger.</p><p>"Shit... Claire wasn't kidding. I mean, you appeared similar to Karen when you were asleep, but seeing you awake... Wow. Oh, wait, I should introduce myself." He pointed to himself with his thumb. "Name's Arnold Dunset. I'm another revenant living here and the uncle of Arthur. A pleasure to see you up, Louis." He offered his hand to Louis.</p><p>Louis took it as Arnold began talking again. "I awoke during Operation Queenslayer. Claire was my nurse then. We began talking back and forth and eventually became friends. That's how I know her. After the Queen went down, I managed to find my nephew in another camp. Claire had no remaining family, but she was good friends with your sister. The only reason she gave me for her taking you was that Karen was constantly worried about whether or not you would wake up. At that time, Karen had gone missing. As the operation was done, some revenants took charge of some that were still asleep. Because she wasn't sure how they would be treated, Claire probably took you to make sure you would remain safe, though I doubt she would ever admit it."</p><p>"I can <em>hear </em>you!"</p><p>That was Claire's shout. It came from another room.</p><p>Arnold scratched the back of his head, glancing out the opened door. "Jeez, she has some sharp hearing..."</p><p>"We probably began talking a little loudly," Arthur added.</p><p>Arnold sighed. "It's so hard to do anything in this place without her hearing..." He raised his voice a little. "Since you chose now to speak up, I assume you need something, Claire?"</p><p>"Yeah. If you're done talking about me behind my back, get Louis outside the house. I got all our weapons and blood veils out of storage. He should try them out to find to find the right ones for him."</p><p>Arnold looked back at Louis. "You heard her. Try getting out of bed."</p><p>Louis slid his legs over the edge of the mattress and planted his feet firmly on the wooden floor before attempting to shift his entire weight onto his legs as he stood up. His legs were wobbly and Louis thought they would just give in, his body collapsing onto the floor.</p><p>"You've been asleep for awhile, so your legs will feel weak at first due to lack of use. But your revenant body prevents your muscles from wasting away," Arnold said.</p><p>Louis took one shaky step forward. It didn't seem like he was going to fall, so he took another step forward. This time, the leg bearing his weight wasn't shaking as much, as if it had already become used to the action of holding up Louis again.</p><p>Arthur remained at Louis' side just in case the latter fell. But it was looking like that wasn't necessary. Louis quickly began walking as if he hadn't just been in a years-long sleep.</p><p>Out of the bedroom doorway was a long hall. Closed doors to a couple other rooms dotted each side. At the end of the hallway, the three came into what was probably the living room. On one wall was a door that Louis was led through. It took him outside.</p><p>A pale blue sky hung over them with no clouds in sight. The ground was bare and cracked as if it hadn't rained in weeks.</p><p>"I take it he had no issues with walking?" Claire asked as she walked over to the three males.</p><p>"Arthur was there to catch him in the event he started to fall, but he was able to come out here unassisted," Arnold replied.</p><p>"Good. Come here, Louis."</p><p>Claire led him to a table. Like the rest of the house it looked old and beat up. But it looked as if it wouldn't just collapse. On the table were two swords, one looking bigger then the other, a haliberd, and rifle with a bayonet. Leaning against the table was a giant hammer. The metal for each weapon looked white. Folded up near the weapons on the table were four pieces of clothing that looked to be the type worn over what you were currently wearing.</p><p>"We have a few more downstairs, but these are the five types of weapons and the four blood veil types," Claire explained. "Try them out and find what suits you best. It may be unconscious, but your blood code may determine what weapon you pick. Mine, for example, is Ereskigal. It boosts attack power for halberds. I wasn't aware of that yet when I chose a weapon to stick with, but it seems to be what caused me to be drawn to my lance.</p><p>Your blood code doesn't favor one blood veil over the others, so the one you pick is totally up to you."</p><p>Louis walked over to the table. He was just about to select a weapon to try out when he paused. "Hey, Claire, out of curiosity do you know my blood code is?"</p><p>"Yes. Tests were performed on you while you slept to determine it. Yours is Prometheus."</p><p>Prometheus. According to Greek mythology, he was a titan who stole fire and gave it to the humans. The notes mentioned abilities associated with blood codes. Were his fire-related then? Or would it grant him the ability to provide support to others?</p><p>His hand hovered over the bayonet, but something deep inside told him not to use it. Would it not work for his blood code? Maybe he was meant to use a different weapon here.</p><p>"Is something wrong?" Arnold asked.</p><p>Louis didn't reply. He instead moved his hand to the haliberd.</p><p>"If he chooses to use the halberd, that will make you the odd one out since you use a two-handed hammer," Claire whispered to Arnold.</p><p>Louis hesitated again just short of grabbing it. Arnold leaned over to Claire so he could whisper in her ear. "Looks as if his blood code is telling him not to use that weapon type either."</p><p>Louis then moved his hand just over the smaller of the two swords. This time, that feeling was urging him to take it. He gave in and grasped the handle.</p><p>"That the one you want to use?" Claire asked. "Remember that if that one doesn't match your fighting style, you can alway switch to another weapon type and try it out."</p><p>"I don't know why, but I feel drawn to this one," Louis replied. He lifted the sword off the table.</p><p>"It was most likely your blood code telling you to pick that one," Claire told him. "Now pick out a blood veil."</p><p>Louis grabbed the one furthest to his left and unfolded it so he could see the entire thing. Over where the left arm would go was a black and red cape slung over the left shoulder. The sleeve for the right arm had black strips of fabric forming a sleeve. On the top of the sleeve was a series of gold plates going down it. Both parts were joined together in the back by what looked like one of the gold plates.</p><p>"That's an ogre blood veil," Claire explained. "Fortunately, Arthur uses the same type. Tomorrow, he can give you tips on how to use it effectively."</p><p>Louis looked over his shoulder at her. "You and Arnold can't?"</p><p>Claire shook her head. "I use Ivy and Arnold uses Hounds. Like with the weapon, you can switch the blood veil you're using if it doesn't end up working out for you." She glanced up at the sky. The sun was already beginning to set. "We should get inside before nightfall. Now, Arnold, I believe it's your turn for guard duty."</p><p>Arnold scratched the back of his head. "I could've sworn it was Arthur's turn."</p><p>Claire sighed. "You should know the order, so stop playing dumb. It goes me, you, then Arthur."</p><p>Arnold gave a very heavy and exaggerated sigh. "Fiiiiine..." He walked with heavy footsteps back into the house.</p><p>Claire walked over to Louis. "I swear he behaves like a child sometimes... I forgot to mention guard duty to you. Basically, we all take turns guarding the house all night from threats such as Lost or revenants looking to steal our blood beads. You'll do it after Arthur does."</p><p>"Huh?" That was Arthur. A hint of a whine was in his voice. "Why not tomorrow night?"</p><p>Claire looked mildly annoyed at Arthur's childish behavior. "I'll be sparring with Louis then to make him a better fighter."</p><p>"Wait, then why am I going with Arthur tomorrow instead of with you?" Louis asked.</p><p>"The routes Arnold and I use are typically more dangerous then what Arthur is sent to because we both have years of combat experience. A path such as the one Arthur's going on would be perfect for a beginner like you. Arthur is also skilled at fighting, though not enough to go on dangerous trips in search of blood beads, but enough to keep you safe."</p><p>"When I woke up, I was teamed up with Arnold," Arthur said to Louis. "As a close uncle of mine, he knows exactly what methods to use in order to get me to learn. He also had to use an easier route then because the blood spring he used to go to withered from the miasma. It took a couple of days for him to find a place to look for another."</p><p>"Anyway, I don't know how adept at fighting you'll become after just one blood bead run," Claire said. "Arthur should be able to show you the basics. That will give us more time tomorrow night to better your skills. Now we should head in."</p><p>The entire way in, Arthur was grumbling. Though he kept it quiet enough that Claire, who was in the lead, couldn't make out what he was saying but could hear him nontheless.</p><p>"Man, she sure can be bossy..."</p><p>Unlike Claire, Louis was close enough to the blonde to hear his words. The brunette fell back a little so he and Arthur were walking side-by-side.</p><p>"She does seem like the one in charge here..." Louis whispered to the other.</p><p>"And to make things worse, she has excellent hearing. Arnold and I have to constantly watch the volume of our words if we start talking shit about her if she's in the same building or if she's doing something that requires concentration."</p><p>"I assume her hearing is useful for noticing enemies."</p><p>"Yeah. One time Claire and I were sparring. She was able to tell that a group of Lost were going to try to ambush us due to her hearing some muted snarling and the sound of pebbles scraping the ground from them being nudged. Short story, she made quick work of them before they could strike."</p><p>"To sum it up, she has ears like a fruit bat?"</p><p>"Arnold and I wanted to test how sharp it really was. One night, I came back from one of my searches for blood beads with an old-world device I got from a merchant called a dog whistle. Basically, it's supposed to be inaudible to a person's level of hearing. Anyway, when I blew it I heard nothing."</p><p>"Well, if someone can't hear it, how do you know it isn't broken?"</p><p>"Well, apparently it does work, 'cause a second later I hear Claire shout from another room 'the hell is that noise?!'"</p><p>"You're talking about your little dog whistle stunt, aren't you?" Claire said without looking back.</p><p>"You heard that?!" Arthur exclaimed.</p><p>Claire, around three meters in front of Arthur, looked back and glared at him. "Of course I did. I'm not deaf."</p><p>"No, you definitely are not..." Arthur grumbled.</p>
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  <strong>I actually can hear a dog whistle. My mom bought one to call the dogs back the next time they go to the swamp. She went out into the yard and blew it. My room is right next to the backyard where she was. Even though my window was closed, I could still hear it. I see that dogs only come back to it to get that annoying sound to stop.</strong>
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